Dave Holland: Prism Media

About Dave Holland: Prism

Now in his 5th decade of performing, Dave Holland is one of the grand masters of modern jazz, and his bass playing and composing is without equal. From his early days with Miles Davis to his Grammy Award-winning big band recordings (2002 and 2005), Holland has consistently changed the game at every turn.

Holland’s new project, Prism, features the ingenious keyboardist Craig Taborn, a Golden Valley MN native who has been one of the top talents on the New York modern jazz scene for twenty years. Prism also features the stunning Eric Harland on drums, who has been seen with Charles Lloyd, the SFJazz Collective, and many others; and Kevin Eubanks, a brilliant guitarist who is resurfacing after a 15-year run leading the Tonight Show Band. Combining the celebrated virtuosity of Taborn on electric and acoustic pianos and the soulful scorch of Eubanks in the front line with Harland’s matchless finesse and expressiveness, this decidedly plugged-in quartet is an explosive outlet for Holland at his unbridled best.

Dave Holland was a student at London’s Guildhall School of Music and Drama, playing gigs at night, when Miles Davis heard him at Ronnie Scott’s nightclub. Miles hired him to be a part of his quintet, and Holland left immediately for New York. Dave was the bass player on Davis’ influential electric recordings: In a Silent Way, Bitches Brew and the sublime Filles de Kilimanjaro. After leaving the Miles group, Holland moved on to a number of projects, working with artists like Anthony Braxton and Sam Rivers. His debut recording as a leader, Conference of the Birds, was released in 1972.

Solo, and in collaboration, Holland became a dominant voice in the 1970s – partnering with Rivers, and working with folk and rock musicians such as Bonnie Raitt and John Hartford, and even had a passing encounter with Jimi Hendrix. He formed his first working quintet in 1983, and released Jumpin’ In, and continued to develop other varied and fruitful relationships with artists such as Anthony Braxton, Stan Getz, Cassandra Wilson, Jack DeJohnette, Chick Corea, Joe Henderson, Thelonious Monk, Betty Carter, Pat Metheny, Kenny Wheeler, Bill Frisell, Roy Haynes and Herbie Hancock over the course of his career.